This mess beside my computer started innocently enough with just one cord that I didn’t know what to do with but didn’t want to throw away. I’m sure you’ve been there, too.

As you can see, it then became the repository for any questionable electronic thingy in the computer room.  Some atttempt was made at keeping order with twistie ties, but that only goes so far.

To take control of a mess like this all you need is:

• -several empty cardboard t-paper tubes (one for every cable)
• -a container that fits in your space
• -15+ minutes, depending on how tangled your mess is

Next, simply grab a cable, find both business ends and hold them together.  Wrap the rest of the cord around your hand, leaving the ends proud of the wraps.  Once done wrapping, tuck the whole thing into a t-paper tube, leaving the ends sticking up.  Repeat with all remaining cables.

Fit any non-cable items in the leftover space, or find another container.

Now at a glance you can see what each end of each cable is for.  If you want to get really organized you could measure the length of each cable and write that on the side of each tube. 

If you do decide to have a container next to your computer, make sure it doesn’t inhibit the free flow of air.

Happy organizing!

Technorati Tags: decluttering, getting organized, home office organization, how to organize, how to organize clutter, organizing clutter

Here’s a clever way to use peg board – without the pegs.  Thread ribbon through the holes, then use the loops to hang photos, notes or appointments with clothespins.  I particularly like this idea because it’s so easily adapted to your personal needs.

Using Peg Board to Organize.

Technorati Tags: calendar, home office organization, how to organize paper clutter, organizing papers, organizing paperwork, organizing pictures, organizing tools, paper clutter, peg board

So here we are, 100 days into 2011. Did you make resolutions back at the first of the year? If so, how are you doing?

Have you made any progress? Or have you forgotten them completely? Or maybe you’ve just given up?

Don’t be discouraged! Instead, let’s make a better plan.

It IS possible to make the changes you want in your life.  Sometimes we just need a better method.  Often we make our goals, resolutions, plans or even to do lists so vague that we set ourselves up for failure.  The problem is that what we’ve written down cannot possibly be accomplished.

Let me give you an example.  A common New Year’s resolution is to lose weight.  So let’s put that on the to do list:

                              * lose weight

Ok, now what?  There it is, staring at you, but what in the world do you do with it?

The key to accomplishing any goal is to make a plan.  Each step in your plan must be specific, not vague, this is often where we run into problems.  Getting back to our example, perhaps the plan is to count calories and exercise.  Ok, then, here’s our list:

                              * count calories
                              * exercise

That’s a little better, but still, how do  you accomplish each step?

Here’s my simple rule for items on a to do list or in a plan:

Each item much be such that after gathering the necessary supplies, you could start on it right now.

Once again, back to our example.  Let’s think of all the steps involved in “counting calories.”

1. Determine how many calories I should have daily in order to lose weight.
2. Find a tool that tells me how many calories different foods have.  (Like Fitday.com or a Calorie Counting book.)
3. Decide how I’m going to keep track of my daily calories. (A cell phone app, a notepad, computer software.)
4. Buy any necessary tools I need to help me measure calories. (Like a scale or measuring cups.)

Now, pick one item that list and picture yourself doing it right now.  Is it doable?  If so, then now you know you have a workable plan.  If not, then perhaps it needs to be broken down even further.   

If you apply the principle of making a plan that consists of doable steps, you’ll find yourself less frustrated  and well on your way to accomplishing your goals, no matter what the time of year.

Oh, and by the way, ANY time is a good time to start, even today. 

Wishing you blessings,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: life changes, life plan, making lists, resolutions

Last week I finally got around to a BIG organizing project that I’ve been wanting to do for a long time: reorganizing our entire bookcase. 

I thought you might find it helpful to see my methods and thinking process, so I took some video of the different steps.  (This is the way I approach just about any organizing project, by they way.)

Here’s the finished product:

And here’s the process: (The whole thing took a little over three hours, not bad!)

One thing to note is that as soon as I finished the last bit of video, I became aware of three more stacks of books in my house that needed sorting into the new system.  Augh.  But, you may have noticed on the video that there was plenty of empty space. 

There’s a lesson here for you:  Whenever you reorganize, make sure to leave some room for growth.  You will probably need it more quickly than you think!

Happy organizing,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: decluttering, get organized, getting organized, home office organization, home organization, how to declutter, how to get organized, how to organize, how to organize your house, organize bookcase, reorganize books

Most of you already know that I’m very much into crafts and sewing. This year I made several Christmas gifts, so the time between Christmas and New Year’s is for sewing for ME. This cute little organizer is just one of the projects I worked on.  It’s basically a mini bucket-buddy for a coffee mug.  Fun stuff!

All of the items you see in it were neatly organized on my workspace, but these are the things I’m always reaching for, so I thought it would be good to have those a little closer at hand.  I’ll let you know how it works out . . .

If you sew, or know someone who does, you can find more info on this project at Keepsake Crafts.

Happy New Year!

Technorati Tags: crafts, desk organizer, mug caddy, sewing

Are you the person responsible for keeping the memories in your family? Perhaps you’re a scrapbooker, or maybe you just want to keep track of those precious items like photos and memorabilia. Here’s a simple tip for getting organized:

Make a folder for each calendar year. As items cross your path, toss keepsakes into their corresponding folder. Some of these things might include special cards you’ve received, flyers, brochures, ticket stubs, napkins and the like.

As a scrapbooker this is very helpful if you have a backlog of photos to scrap, especially if you work chronologically. Once you start a particular year, you can pull out the folder that goes with it and see what else you have to include in your pages.

If you aren’t a scrapbooker, at least you know that these precious items are safely tucked away where you can find them and aren’t in danger of being lost or accidentally thrown out.

Technorati Tags: getting organized, home organization, how to organize your house, memories, organizing memorabilia, scrapbooking, scrapbooks

So Many Blogs, So Little Time

If you’re like most of the rest of us, you probably have several blogs that you like to keep up with on an ongoing basis.  However, it can be a huge drain on your time to click on each one every day to see if there’s something new.  There must be a better way.

A Brilliant Solution – The Feed Reader 

With a feed reader, you “subscribe” to each blog you want to read.  Then you can check in one place to see all the new posts on all of the blogs on your list without having to go to each individual site.

I was hesitant about using a feed reader, because I really like seeing the layout of each blog, the colors the author has chosen, etc.  But when I realized how much more efficient this is, and how much time it could save me, I made the switch. 

Sounds Good, How Do I Get Started? 

First of all, you need to choose a feed reader.  There are several out there.  If you search Google for “best feed readers” you’ll find a multitude of opinions.  I chose Google Reader because the reviews said it was simple to use and easy to organize.  Works for me!  (However, here are several others you can choose from:  NewzCrawler, FeedDemon, OmeaReader, NewsGator, Awasu, Blog Navigator and SharpReader, just to name a few.) 

Now, Subscribe To All Your Favorite Blogs 

Next you’ll need to follow the directions on your feed reader to subscribe to the blog you want to watch.  On Google Reader it’s as easy as clicking on “Add a Subscription” and typing or pasting in the website name.  Google will find any related feeds for you.  If Google can’t find it, you may need to go to the blog website and click on their little  button.  This will bring up the feed address in your address bar, and you can just paste it in to “Add a Subscription.”

Finally, Let’s Keep ‘em Organized 

The last thing I recommend you do, especially if you have a lot of blogs on your list, is to organize them into folders by category.  Google Reader makes this very easy to do.  (I’m sure it’s fairly simple on any of the other readers as well.)  Some examples of my categories are:  People (friends & family blogs), Fun Stuff (this includes www.icanhascheezburger.com, a must!), Crafts, Organizing and Shopping (sites like Woot.com.) 

I hope you find this a helpful tip to make better use of your precious time!

Wishing you blessings,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: blog, blogging, blogs, feed reader, get organized, getting organized, google reader, organizing lists, rss feeds, simplify, subscribe to blogs, time management

Here’s a nifty little way to help you prioritize any kind of to do list.  Often our lists can be overwhelming because they’re rattling around in our brains without any kind of organization.  This leaves us with no idea of where or how to begin.  Follow my four simple steps and you’ll find yourself confidently starting where you should and not worrying about the stuff you can’t get to right away.

1. Get it all down in print – Either handwrite out a list, or type it up on the computer.  It’s not a bad idea to keep a small notebook with you so whenever an idea pops into your head, you can write it down. 
2. Type it into a spreadsheet program – Once your list is fairly complete (you can always go back and add items later) type it out into a program like Microsoft Excel.  You’ll want to have each item on its own line, all going down one column, like this:  (I’ve added another column so I can sort these projects by room as well.)

1. Give each item a number of priority, from 1-10 – In the cell to the right of each item type a number from 1-10, indicating its priority in your mind.  Don’t overthink this, you can always go back and change it. 
2. Sort your list – In Excel, you can click on any cell in the column you want to sort by, and then click the “AZ ” button in the toolbar.  You can also choose the “ZA” button to sort the other way.  (If you have a different program, try using their ‘help’ function to find out how to sort columns.)  Now here’s the magic!  All of your listed items followed their numerical pals and are organized by your priority.  Here’s my list, all sorted.  I think it’s too cool.

Now it’s all very clear, and you know what needs to be done first, second, etc.

Wishing you blessings,

Sandy

Technorati Tags: getting organized, home organization, home organizing, household chores, how to get organized, lists, organizing lists, spreadsheet programs

So now that it’s officially fall, it’s time to consider the Great Attic Cleanout.  I like to do this in the fall because the weather is getting cooler, so the temperature is actually bearable up there. 

We have a walk-up attic, which covers the entire footprint of our house.  This is wonderful because it’s really like a large closet and it’s very easy to pop up there and store just about anything.  It’s also kinda bad for the same reason!

On a quick check recently I realized we have no less than 4 ink-jet printers up there.  I’m not sure if my old dot matrix printer is still hanging about, but it might be.  There are also at least two dozen empty boxes that were saved “just in case we need to return it,” three broken Christmas trees, and twenty tubes of dried up paint from my art school days.  (I will NOT tell you how long ago that was.)  What I want to know is, are these things typical?  What’s the strangest thing to be found in your attic?

Perhaps someone can advise me on just how long to keep my kids’ homeschool papers?  They’ve long since graduated and are only 20 & 22 now, lol.  Maybe I’ll go through them and use a few when I get around to scrapbooking those years. 

This year, I’m recruiting my husband to do the schlepping of trash (and empty boxes) up and down all three flights of stairs.  But, shhhhhh, he doesn’t know it yet, or he might plan to be away that day.

Happy Fall Organizing, ya’ll!

Sandy

Technorati Tags: clean attic, clutter, get rid of clutter, home organization, old boxes, organize attic, paper clutter, saving homechool papers, saving things just in case

Here’s a great little application to make your life much easier. 

Grocery List – Free Printable Grocery Lists.

Here’s what they have to say about themselves:

 NEW! Interactive Grocery List   

Simply use your mouse to check off the items that you need, add any notes for yourself at the bottom and then print and shop!

Sometimes home organizing doo-dads end up being too complicated to bother with.  This one is simple, it does one thing and does it well.  Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: busy mom, grocery list, home organization, home organizing, lists, simplify, working mom